Rats – The Brown Rat

Rats are known to carry diseases such as salmonella and Weil’s disease, which is potentially fatal to humans and can contaminate foodstuffs and goods. Rats are capable of squeezing through spaces that appear to be much too small for them. They have oversized front teeth for gnawing, which are adapted for chewing. Rats chew on anything available to them and cause great damage.

Appearance

The Brown Rat range in size from about 7-9.5 inches long (not including the tail) and are usually varying shades of a grey/brown in colour. Droppings are capsule-shaped with blunt ends. 35 to 40 cm in length),

Breeding

The Brown Rat reaches sexual maturity in 2-5 months, they breed throughout the year having 6-7 litters per year, each letter can be 8-10 young. Adults live up to one year.

Treating the problem

Most calls we recieve are people with rats in the garden or rats in inaccessible places in their home such as the attic or between walls. Our service technicians can provide you with a high quality service and support to deal with your rat problem using nothing but the best quality products and latest techniques. We Guarantee you will receive a personal service and advice every step of the way. Call today 01 4509812

How to get rid of Rats and Mice

A Rat will quite happily live along side you in your home. They are mainly active at night, they can eat about 10% of their own body weight of food daily they also require a regular supply of water. Most calls we get about rats people report hearing noise in the attic or in the walls, most of this noise is because their front teeth are continuously grow and to keep the teeth at a perfect length the rat needs to gnaw on hard objects all the time.

Things that can attract rats to your garden.

Bins – make sure you place the lids on your bins, don’t leave back bag out the back.

Food for pets and birds that has not been eaten. Birdseed on the ground, pet food in pet dishes, bread crumbs, etc.

Fruits and berries that have fallen to the ground.

Compost pile /bin that isn’t taken care of the right way (do not put meat, fish, poultry, or dairy in the compost)

Why do rodents come into buildings ?

Rats move into buildings for shelter and food, this normally happen around autumn or winter, however they can decided to move indoor at any time of the year. Once inside your home they tend to be found in the following area’s

Inside the insulation of walls or ceilings

In or behind cupboards, counters and under the bath

Near the boiler

In attics ( lots of lovely insulation to keep them warm)

Under the floor

People report the following signs that there may be rats or mice in their home:

Noise (Scratching & Gnawing noise)

Rat droppings

Damage to food

Footprints on dusty surfaces

Unusual smells

Weil’s disease (Leptospirosis)

Leptospirosis is a bacterial disease associated rats as well as other wild animals.Rats are popularly blamed as the major culprit for the spread of the disease in their urine and faeces. The severe form of leptospirosis,you’ll know as Weil’s disease, can be fatal if not treated early. Weil’s disease can enter the body through cuts or abrasions in the skin. It can also enter via the nose, mouth. Weil’s disease begins as a fever, followed by muscular aches and pains. A person can also have loss of appetite and vomiting. The incubation period for Weil’s disease is 7 to 13 days.

Weil’s disease can be overlooked in the early stages, but a blood test can confirm if a person has Weil’s disease. Treatment is usually with an antibiotic.